Abominable

by Alan Nayes

  “Yes, Mommy,” the child said in a tiny voice. Good for you, too, Cynthia.

  Shelby tried to tune out all the noise and distractions around her—the choppers, the voices in the crowd which had mushroomed over the last twenty minutes, and vehicular traffic, horns honking, on Wilshire Blvd.

  She kept her head down but maintained eye contact with the primate. Goliath squatted motionless like a giant sculpted albino primate god, yet she knew he was watching her every move.

  When she got within ten yards she heard him snort. She stopped. “Hi, Cynthia,” she said. “I’m Shelby.”

  The child actually smiled weakly. “Are you really friends with Goliath?”

  “I am. Hello, Goliath.” She watched the girl begin to wriggle under his huge fingers and it took all of Shelby’s control not to make a sudden move and shout, “Don’t do that!” Instead she said in a neutral tone, “Cynthia, please stay very still until I say okay to move. Do you understand, dear?”

  The child stopped twisting. “Okay, Shelby.”

  “Are you hurting anywhere?”

  “I’m fine.”

  “Good.” Shelby gave the vets and John a few more seconds to position themselves, keeping a close eye on Goliath. His attention remained focused on her. She was the closest. Good.

  The plan was simple. The two veterinarians and John stood spread out just behind her by five yards. Each was paired with a police rifleman. Once the child was safely free—if Shelby could accomplish this—then all three tranquilizer darts would be fired, the dosages already calculated to be optimum for knock-down effect but still falling in the safe range for the subject. Shelby had decided not to carry her rifle or any weapon, though Rivas had offered his Beretta 9mm. She’d declined—she wasn’t that familiar with firearms and that was what the paired police riflemen were for. Once darted, the enraged primate would in all likelihood charge Shelby since she was the closest. The final decision to shoot remained with the police. If Shelby’s or the child’s safety appeared in jeopardy at any time the orders were “shoot to kill.”

  Shelby understood. She just hoped they didn’t have itchy trigger fingers.

  Behind her Rivas called out, “Set.”

  I’m on. Shelby slowly took a step closer. And another, each time saying, “Goliath.” At seven yards he snorted again and she stopped.

  “Hi, Goliath.” She held her palms out in a supplication pose. “I want you to do this.”

  She squatted down mimicking the giant’s stance, and rested both hands on the grass, palms up. “Do this, Goliath.” She repeated the maneuver. And again. “Do this.” Again.

  No response. Damn. At least he was still watching her.

  “Goliath.” She repeated his name and the maneuver three times. Come on, big guy, please cooperate.

  “Shelby.”

  “Yes, Cynthia?” Her eyes darted to the child and back to Goliath.

  “I can feel his fingers.”

  “What are they doing?”

  “Getting looser.”

  Yes! “Cynthia, did you know Goliath once had a daughter around your age?” She repeated the maneuver, palms on the ground. “Goliath, do this.” She knew he wouldn’t understand the words but she said them anyway. She only wanted him to mimic her. “Let Cynthia down, Goliath. Let her down.”

  For a long minute, Shelby didn’t move. Neither did the giant. She felt like it had become a chess match and neither was able to say checkmate. For the first time since walking up on the huge primate, she sensed an incipient monumental fail. Regardless, she had to save the child, if nothing else succeeded. Suddenly the commotions around her began to filter in, and she could feel the aching in her thighs from holding the same position. She wanted to stretch. She imagined all the eyes on her and the child and the giant ape. Dammit, Goliath, just do it!

  His left palm dropped to the grass and then his right. Holy shit!

  The child stood on the grass, still next to him. Run, run, run! she wanted to scream. Instead, Shelby smiled and said quietly, “Just walk away slowly, Cynthia. Come to me first.”

  For a long moment the child hesitated. “Now?”

  “Yes, now, dear. Slowly. Don’t make any fast moves.”

  Shelby watched transfixed as the child stepped away as timidly as if she were sneaking up to catch a butterfly.

  When the child reached her, Shelby finally allowed herself to breathe. “Good girl, now continue slowly to your mother.”

  The child started then stopped and hugged Shelby. “Thank you. Will the giant be okay?”

  Shelby offered a grin. “Yes, I think so but go to your mother. She really misses you.”

  She waited until Rivas called out, “Safe.” The code word.

  Shelby heard three rapid PFOOTS in succession.

  Goliath roared, stood up, and took a step toward Shelby.

  “I’m sorry, Goliath.”

  The giant appeared to want to beat his chest as Shelby remained squatting. He watched her a long ten seconds and squatted back down. Shelby almost sensed the huge primate wished to speak to her, if he were able. She waited without moving, just watching him, him her.

  “It’s over,” Shelby finally called out. “Don’t shoot.”

  Forty-five seconds later, he rolled on his side and lay still.

  Shelby and John stood over the sedated giant while a hydraulic lift was rolled onto the field to hoist him back onto the medi-van gurney. The police perimeter remained, keeping the curious crowd at a distance.

  She was aware of Astor and Bonds and Jean Simpkins stepping up to observe.

  This time she didn’t mince her words. “You know Goliath is not an alien.”

  Astor studied the massive chest and abdomen. “But what’s in his head might be.”

  “So that’s why NASA and the military requested the CT.”

  “Yes.”

  “It will be normal,” Shelby said, observing the giant’s closed eyes. Respirations were regular.

  Astor and Bonds exchanged a look before the astrophysicist commented, “Now that’s where I suspect you’ll be in error, Dr. Hollister.”

  On this point she was.

  CHAPTER 22

  Every seat was taken in the viewing room at the Los Angeles Animal Institute. The nervous anticipation showed clearly in every face. Shelby was familiar with everyone present—John, Astor, Bonds, the lead veterinarian who’d been in charge of Goliath’s sedation during the procedure—except for one man in a military uniform. He was introduced as Colonel Anderson and Shelby assumed he was one of Mendle’s superiors from Eielson. He didn’t say much, a few words to Bonds and that was about all, although he did commend Shelby on the favorable outcome in Douglas Park. Dr. Reddic had even broken away from his tight schedule at the Primatolgy Center to hear the results, especially after witnessing the news flashes and videos about Goliath’s escape.

  The entire procedure had lasted almost twice as long as the anticipated twenty-five minutes because the radiologist in charge of veterinary diagnostics had ordered a follow-up MRI—magnetic resonance imaging scan—once she’d seen the CT. Shelby wasn’t sure what that was all about but she figured they would all learn soon enough.

  A door opened. All eyes turned in unison from the dark flat-panel on the wall above a computer console to the entrance.

  A slender Asian woman in a white lab coat entered holding a disc in her hands. Her face was delicate-boned and with her hair pulled back in a ponytail, Shelby thought she looked a little like the actress Lucy Liu. “I’m Nancy Kwan. Sorry it took longer than expected but this is a very unusual case.” She smiled all around. “And I’m sure I don’t need to tell any of you that.”

  A few soft chuckles.

  John leaned close to Shelby. “I’m not feeling so good about a ‘normal’ scan.”

  Shelby nodded, observing the others in the room. She’d been so adamant about a normal result, and suddenly here she was entertaining doubts. Serious doub
ts. She caught Astor and Bonds looking her way and she turned her attention back to the panel. If she had to eat crow, she would. The radiologist inserted the disc, typing a few keys while lines of data appeared.

  The first image filled the screen.

  Dr. Kwan, using her mouse as a pointer, explained, “This is a full sagittal view of the subject’s cranial cavity. Sagittal meaning as if the head were sliced in half from the top to bottom between the ears.” Using the pointer, “Superior, inferior, anterior, posterior here. By the way, this is by far the largest primate brain we’ve ever imaged here in Los Angeles by a factor of three and maybe four. Simply astounding.”

  Bonds asked the first question. “How does it compare to the other great apes?”

  Astor interjected, “Including man.”

  Shelby knew the answer but allowed Dr. Kwan to elaborate. “Gorillas’ brains are the largest of the great apes at about seven hundred cubic centimeters, followed by chimpanzees’ and orangutans’, which are very similar—around three to five hundred. Homo sapiens run around twelve to thirteen hundred cc’s.” She added, “Interestingly, the Neanderthal brain was larger than our brains by a good three hundred cc’s.”

  While the radiologist spoke Shelby nudged John and pointed at a radiopaque spot near the front of the giant’s skull. She whispered, “Unless that’s an artifact, we’re in for a surprise.”

  Dr. Kwan used the pointer to outline Goliath’s brain case. “Twenty-two hundred cc’s. That’s a really big brain, folks.”

  Murmurs erupted, and Astor asked, “What is the correlation between brain size and intelligence?”

  More CT images filled the screen as the radiologist explained, “Larger cranial capacity does not always denote greater intelligence. For instance, I mentioned Neanderthals. Their brains were larger but most would argue they could not compete with the home sapiens of their time. Also, larger bodies have larger brains and colder environments for some reason stimulate greater brain growth.” She settled on an anterior frontal view. “But the most puzzling finding is this.”

  So not an artifact. Shelby watched the image grow as the radiologist zoomed in on the frontal area of Goliath’s brain. It appeared white on the scan and was eight-sided. She guessed about an inch across.

  “I knew it,” the astrophysicist blurted out.

  Dr. Kwan smiled. “Good. I hope you know because I sure as hell have no idea what I’m looking at here.”

  “That’s the temporal lobe?” Shelby asked.

  “Yes, Dr. Hollister, it is. More exactly the left medial temporal lobe. And if what I’ve read and heard on the news is correct, this huge primate was preserved in an unknown fashion for the last twenty-eight thousand years.”

  “Yes,” Astor replied. “The matrix he was found in is composed of a substance found nowhere else on earth, or any collected meteorites for that matter. Completely foreign, completely alien.”

  The radiologist stared at the image. “I can tell you it’s an octahedron and twenty-five millimeters in diameter and eleven in width at its thickest. It’s also extremely radio dense. More so than the hardest metal.” She rotated the image. “As you can see, the object tapers as you near the edges. And here”—she moved the pointer—“is a well-healed defect in the patient’s left temporal bone, also an octahedron.”

  Reddic commented exactly what Shelby was thinking. “It was placed there.”

  Dr. Kwan studied the image a moment. “That is my interpretation. I have no other hypothesis to offer except to say, sometime around twenty-eight thousand years ago, your giant primate underwent an extremely complex neurosurgical procedure.”

  Goliath remained fully sedated and strapped to an oversized stretcher designed for imaging large mammals. Shelby entered the scanner room and looked around and frowned. Where was the assistant or vet? Goliath shouldn’t be left unmonitored. “Hello,” she said, only loud enough to get anyone’s attention in the immediate area. The only sound was the heavy stertorous sound of a massive set of lungs moving air. She watched the huge giant breathing a moment. An intravenous solution hung from a portable IV pole and she followed the plastic tubing down to where the IV needle entered a vein in the giant’s thick wrist. His eyes were closed. Heavy double leather restraints secured his arms, chest, abdomen, and ankles to the stretcher. I hope those are rated over ten thousand pounds. Before moving closer, she whispered, “Goliath.”

  No response. She walked closer, purposely keeping the door behind her open. She’d left the others in the viewing room when it became evident the discussion regarding the strange object implanted in the giant primate’s brain was going in circles with no answers. Much like what had transpired with the UCO, she thought ruefully. The last bits of conversation had been enough for her.

  Dr. Kwan offering, “Whatever it is, I believe it’s inert.”

  Astor responding with acerbity, “That thing in his head is anything but inert.”

  Shelby had whispered to John, “I’m going to check on Goliath.”

  She stood beside the stretcher. Goliath had a pungent scent but it wasn’t unpleasant. Definitely different than a gorilla or orangutan. She studied the massive prostrate form. God, you seem bigger every day. His chest reached past the width of the oversized stretcher by a good six inches each side. The light-colored hair over his rounded pectoralis muscles lay in soft layers, hiding the dense muscle underneath. Hesitantly at first, she reached out one hand and touched a relaxed index finger. It was as thick as her wrist. She’d just started to touch the palm when a voice warned, “I wouldn’t do that if I were—”

  Shelby pulled away and turned.

  The veterinary assistant said quickly, “Oh, it’s you, Dr. Hollister,” smiling awkwardly. “I’m sorry. I know you know what you’re doing.”

  Sometimes I wonder. She returned the smile. “Where is everyone? Goliath shouldn’t be left alone.”

  The assistant walked over and checked the IV. “He’s zonked on propofol. The vet wants him out until he’s back at the Center.” She didn’t have to say what Shelby guessed was on her mind—after what happened in Douglas Park.

  “Where is the vet anesthetist?” she asked, keeping her eyes on Goliath.

  “Called down the hall to check on a llama from the LA Zoo about to undergo a procedure. Was only gone a minute before you came in and should be right back.” Seemingly satisfied with the infusion, she made a notation in an electronic chart. “Goliath’s being closely watched,” pointing out the video cameras mounted on the scanner. She waved. “There are about ten folks within a few seconds from this room observing if he starts to come out of it.”

  Shelby simply nodded, the image of the strange object in Goliath’s brain returning. She moved up toward his huge head. His simian features appeared relaxed under the white hair. Up this close she could see some flecks of melanin on his wide flat nose and over his cheeks. So he wasn’t pure albino, but he obviously carried the gene. She was drawn to his left temporal area. It surprised her that no surgical scar was detectable.

  So Astor and NASA had been correct when they’d ordered a CT scan. And she’d been wrong that it would return normal. Actually, both sides had been correct, she reasoned. The images did confirm that Goliath’s brain was a typical primate brain—just a lot larger. Astor had been correct when he’d suggested they would find an abnormality—in this case the abnormality placed in the brain was what was alien, not the primate.

  What the hell was it? she wondered. Images of the juvenile primate skull from Little Okpilak floated in her mind. She visualized the round hole above the right orbit. She caught herself extrapolating that image to the skull they hadn’t found yet, Goliath’s mate. Still buried in the glacier, she presumed. Would her defect be round or octahedral? Or would she even have an artificial defect in her cranium?

  A light knock caught her attention. “Am I interrupting?” John asked.

  Shelby saw the assistant had returned to the CT console, producing more co
pies of the scan discs. She guessed these were requested by Astor and Bonds. Also one for the colonel. “No. Just ensuring he’s ready for the ride back.”

  John approached. Shelby saw the same look in his eyes as everyone else who observed Goliath up close—a combination of awe, disbelief, and perhaps a little fear. Definitely respect.

  “They still discussing the CT?” she asked.

  He indicated yes with brief nod. She saw him checking out the IV line. “Propofol,” she explained. “He’ll sleep all the way—” She almost said home, then finished with, “the Center.”

  “Let’s hope this trip doesn’t end like the ride here.”

  She watched him frown. “Why the look?”

  Also like everyone else, even in the midst of conversation, it was difficult gazing away from the giant. John continued staring at the huge primate. “After you left, that military officer, Astor, and Bonds discussed the next step ‘in the evaluation.’”

  Shelby liked his tone less. “What do you mean, ‘next step in the evaluation’?”

  “They were referring to that thing implanted in his head.”

  “Yes?” She watched his profile.

  He finally turned and met her gaze. “You aren’t going to like this.”

  “I wasn’t keen on the CT, but I’m glad we did it now.”

  “You might not be after you hear Astor’s request.”

  “That prima donna assjerk.”

  John stared back at the inert giant. “Astor and NASA want a closer look at it.”

  Shelby visibly tensed. “What?”

  John nodded slowly. “Neurosurgery. They plan on removing it.”